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Monday, December 21, 2015

Can You Say It, Too? Jingle! Jingle! is a new addition to the series by Sebastien Braun. As Santa delivers gifts, he asks, "Who's that?" to the reader. Below the flaps wait reindeer, a polar bear, a bird, and a dog. Each shares his sound in the excitement. Finally Santa deposits the presents under the tree. The final spread bears two flaps, one for children who, "Giggle! Giggle!" and one for Santa as he flies away with a "Merry Christmas! Ho! Ho! Ho!"

Nosy Crow always delivers just the right fun to totz. Here is Christmas in a board book for little fingers. Happy holiday!

Monday, December 14, 2015

I have fallen in love with Laurence King publishers. Prepare to be wowed by their contributions for our smallest readers.

Little Houses, A Counting Book by Helen Musselwhite is a perfect example. Portraying an array of house types, your totz will enjoy the paper constructions demonstrating the featured number. Various other animals and objects are included to echo the digit as well. A final spread illustrates each of the houses alongside their number. Four additional pages present the kinds of houses from around the world that were shown, from a chalet in Switzerland to a Ndebele house in South Africa. Older sibs will enjoy the information.

This picture book has a feeling of space and room for all the houses, numbers, and creatures. The heavy pages will resist an accidental tear from your totz.

Monday, December 7, 2015

Why not a book you can Carry and Learn? How about Numbers and much more. With a handle at the top, just the right size for readertotz, your toddler can carry, touch-and-feel, lift-a-flap, and respond to the requested call on each page. They might stomp like one elephant, stand tall like two giraffes, and growl like three lions.

Adjectives are introduced as well: furry, wet, and spotted. Numbers are repeated for repetition and occupy the left side of every spread. Finally, readertotz are asked what is their favorite animal numbered at the zoo. The glossy paper seems especially durable, along with the raised dots on the cover which make an easy-to-grip book.

Cartwheel knows how to create for the littlest readers. I'm happy they are my publisher as well!

Monday, November 30, 2015

Splat the Cat Christmas Countdown is a fun touch-and-feel holiday book. Splat prepares for Santa's visit with a tree and gifts. Snuggled into bed, his hope arrives, and the next morning is full of celebration.

This familiar character brings innovative textures to the holiday with a prickly tree, a shiny package ribbon, and ultimately, Splat's own belly fur. What a fun board book for the holiday countdown!

Thursday, November 19, 2015

Celebrating 75 years from its first publication, Caps for Sale, A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys and Their Monkey Business, a Reading Rainbow Book, by Esphyr Slobodkina is now accompanied by a formerly unpublished sequel, More Caps for Sale, Another Tale of Mischievous Monkeys.

Rereading Caps for Sale, I'm struck by the beauty of the rhythm and repetition within the work.

So the peddler
picked up his caps and
put them back on his head--

first his own checked cap,

then the gray caps,

then the brown caps,

then the blue caps,

then the red caps
on the very top.

Doesn't it just resonate calmness? The sequel begins with the same opening as Caps for Sale. But the peddler considers the monkeys and how he sold no caps that day. This time as he sets an example for the monkeys, they also set an example for the peddler. He follows their lead by eating and sleeping. Journeying back to town the following morning, the peddler sells all his caps as the monkeys entertain the townspeople by imitating the peddler. They learn proper conduct from him.

Ann Marie Mulhearn Sayer wrote this sequel with story ideas from Slobodkina. The two were longtime friends, business partners, and supporters of each other. The sequel art was extracted and manipulated by Sayer from Slobodkina's paintings and illustration. The reader might initially feel the difference, if a lover of Caps for Sale, but the work pulls together with a sense of unity.

Monday, November 16, 2015

Little Hansie Bear loves to pretend. Walking like a duck sends him down into a ditch, but his dad comes to his aid. Again his father helps when Hansie gets sand in his eyes and later bumps his head. At the end of the day when his father is overwhelmed, the little bear is able to comfort him.

Originally a picture book in 2013, There, There, by Sam McBratney and illustrated by Ivan Bates, transfers well into the board book format. For the older readertotz, the text will not be too heavy, and the message will be appreciated.

Saturday, November 14, 2015

In perfect time for the holidays we have a reissue of a book from 1989 with updates for the modern reader and older sibs of your totz. Delia Ephron's Do I Have to Say Hello? Aunt Delia's Manners Quiz for Kids and Their Grownups is available for giggling and learning simultaneously.

The work begins with Aunt Delia's letter and book arriving at the kids' home. It is an invite to take a quiz of manners. How do the children reply?

"Go jump in the lake."
"I hate tests."
"Okay, but I'm bringing forty friends. You'd better have food.
"I'd love to, Aunt Delia. Thank you so much for asking me."If you accepted the invitation, what do you do now?
Turn the page.
Close the book and throw it out the window.

Edward Koren's squiggly, loose, ink drawings illustrate topics from Restaurant Manners to Video Game Manners and Holiday Manners. Delia's humor is punctuated with Edward's hilarious imagery of children acting out at times with inappropriate responses.

The modern inclusions are gems.

Now you're playing Minecraft. Aunt Delia is watching. She says, "Do you have to kill the sheep, too? Why don't you just cut the wool?"What do you say?
"Wait until I kill this pig and then I'll explain."
"Stop talking. You just made me die."

And how perfect to end with the holidays we are approaching.

It's time to go home. What's the best way to show everyone how much you love them?
Give them each a big hug and a kiss and thank Aunt Delia for the delicious dinner.
Say, "Some Thanksgiving. The only thing I liked was the white meat turkey."
Say, "So long, Aunt Delia, Uncle Jerry, Grandma, Grandpa, Matt, Michelle, and baldie. See you at Christmas. Bring big presents."

Friday, November 13, 2015

Here's a gorgeous selection for Poetry Friday. Find it and enjoy the poems over and over with your totz! The large size drops you right into Chris Riddell's line drawings as you rock into Michael Rosen's poems.

Mo

Mo's in a muddle
She slipped in a puddle
Mommy gives Mo
A great big cuddle.

Friday, November 6, 2015

Book, art expression, game, or toy? The White Book fits each of these categories with smiles and enjoyment along the way.

As a young boy roller paints a wall, white-lined imagery appears, dissolves from the space, and flies, swims, and walks away. Pacing is sustained with excitement building from a sudden dinosaur's appearance to an anteater who attempts to eat the boy's paint roller. The conclusion is perfect.

This minibombo book lives up to its claim: a little book buzzing with a big idea. The interactive app can be purchased for .99, and your child can create and experience color on your ipad or iPhone. Click here to purchase. The fun and learning will continue with additional exposure to animals, colors, and painting. Take a peek at the trailer.

Here is this generation's Harold and the Purple Crayon.

The minibombo websiteoffers even more art activities for little hands. Happy reading and painting with your totz! Looking forward to more fun from minibombo.

Friday, October 30, 2015

Nina Laden's latest board book Peek-a BOO! is a perfect celebration of Poetry Friday and the holiday tomorrow. There's a lot of buzz for this clever book. It's going to be enjoyed for many, many years. A new holiday classic. Congrats, Nina!

Monday, September 28, 2015

Owl Babies in board book format! I'm so excited! This is a beloved favorite of our family, and I'm so glad it's formatted again for little hands.

The cover is lightened, the background blue rather than black, maybe to make it less scary? Otherwise Patrick Benson's perfect imagery is untouched, as well as Martin Waddell's text. Bravo, Candlewick!

I met Martin years ago and can still hear his voice reading as Sarah, Percy, and Bill await the return of their mother. Here is a lifework to treasure.

Friday, September 25, 2015

Filling little boxes with treasures from home, helps a Chinese American brother and sister prepare for a move. The picture book-in-verse tells a complete story as a novel-in-verse would. Another delight from Chronicle, and it's perfect for Poetry Friday!

Leaf

One stray leaf
flutters down
onto my box--
Eucalyptus!
If I had a koala I'd feed
her this minty meal all
day long--
the perfect treasure
to remind me of home.

Monday, August 24, 2015

Mary Murphy has another adorable board book for your totz. Are You My Mommy? asks a little dog of the various farm animals. Each mother says no but introduces the puppy to her baby. New words are likely introduced such as duckling, foal, and calf.

The thick black outline for characters and the Murphy Brush typeset against soft watercolor settings create vibrant spreads. Candlewick Press has a gem in Mary Murphy.

Nosy Crow has a series titled Can You Say It, Too? The big flaps are easy to lift for little hands. Quack! Quack! and Arf! Arf! are the two I most recently ran across from Sebastien Braun. The former is set near a pond and the latter by the sea. Answers to the questions are printed on the backside of the flaps.

The series could easily have been titled, "Who's that?" With each question and flap, another character is present as well. The additions can expand the interactive read. Double flaps at the conclusion are a nice surprise.

Chunky and sturdy with adorable animals, these are sure to be read and reread. Look for the whole series.

Friday, August 21, 2015

I'm a chickies fan! Thanks, Janee Trasler for another peek into the life of the chickies. In Bathtime for Chickies we find the little birds covered in grime and grub, resisting bathing, and then not wanting to get out of the bath…over and over. Pig washes them once; Cow follows up the perfume/lotion mess; and the cooking catastrophe is cleaned up by Sheep.

Thursday, August 20, 2015

I'm a huge fan of wordless picture books. Before your summer ends and school starts up again, find Pool by JiHyeon Lee. As a young boy approaches the public pool, it seems the entire town turns out and jumps in ahead of him. But…what if he dives beneath all the floaties and splashing swimmers to find a girl down below. Maybe there is a world of coral, fish, and mythic creatures, tiny and great, to be discovered.

With their descent, color saturates the oversized format, and the reader is lost in another world created with color pencils and oil pastels. When the two friends resurface, it's possible their discoveries return with them and cause the pool to empty. The book is dedicated: "For Those Who Want To Swim Freely in the World."

This is JiHyeon Lee's first book. The work so clearly taps into the imagination it feels as if she has read our own wishes. Brava! Joan and I will be waiting for more from this gifted newcomer.

Pool
by JiHyeon Lee
Chronicle Books, 2015, originally published in South Korea, 2013

Monday, August 17, 2015

I have two lift-the-flaps that are unique and stand out from the stack. Alain Crozon's All Shook Up! and Who's There? are strong, graphic additions to the market which invite page turns and giggles.

The limited palate of blue, yellow, black, and red; the matte pages; and thick black line create all the fun. Whether you are reading and lifting to discover what's inside the fearless fish or the nesting dolls, or exploring movement in fluttering feathers and spiky hair, the reads are interactive and dosed with joy.

Friday, August 14, 2015

Happy Poetry Friday! It's time to "Make up your mind," with two totz, the boy and girl from One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish, trying to decide which pet to take home. How lovely to have one more Dr. Seuss book to treasure with back matter to explain context. Enjoy!

"Dad said we could have one.
Dad said he would pay.
I went to the Pet Shop.
I went there with Kay.

Friday, July 24, 2015

Poetry Friday will be a beauty with The Bus is for Us! Michael Rosen's text swings through locomotive options, real and imaginary, while Gillian Tyler's illustrations softly wisp along the reader. Find this rhyming picture book and then take a ride somewhere delightful with your totz. Consider taking the bus!

Thursday, July 16, 2015

Elmore Green began life as an only child, happy with his status in the family. No one ever ate his jelly beans, until "somebody else came along." The small person, being cut major slack within the family, makes Elmore wish he would go away. And when he only grows larger and moves into Elmore's room, there's little hope left in life.

But a bad dream and finding a bit of comfort from the younger sib, along with a large dose of admiration, and someone to laugh with, changes Elmore's perspective. Enough to share his jellybeans. Except the orange ones, of course.

Lauren Child is the master of wry humor, truthful twists, and everyday observations. The New Small Person is a brilliant work to add to your collection beside Charlie, Lola, and Clarice Bean. More, more, more, we say!

Monday, July 13, 2015

Shark Bite! is a fun read for your readertotz, helping them to see maybe the fearsome can be friendly after all. On each spread, Mark the shark shows his teeth, and a pull tab allows the reader to chomp through the book.

Scary, then angry, then laughing, thanks to the tickling octopus, Mark finds friendship in the sea. Beatrice Costamagna's illustrations are bright and inviting. Look for Shark Bite! for your readertotz and take a bite out of this board book this summer.

Friday, June 26, 2015

So adorable with rhyme throughout. Itty Bitty Kitty is a great pick for Poetry Friday! Enjoy our own Joan Holub's bouncy, punchy text accompanied by the cutest illustrations by James Burks. Move over Clifford!

It was a furry purry,
snuggly huggly,
cutie patootie,
itty...
bitty...
kitty!
He had sparkly green eys
and was just the right size
for a girl like Ava.

Thursday, June 18, 2015

Oh, these two caught it: the summer sun and fun at a beach house. This is perfect for your Poetry Friday out at the shore. Deanna Caswell's text is lyrical while Amy June Bates captures sunshine in her watercolors. Enjoy!

A long, long drive.

It's been a year
of dreaming, waiting.

Summer's here.

Doors fly open.
End of the road.

"To the beach!"
"Not yet--unload."

Beach House
by Deanna Caswell
illustrated by Amy June Bates
Chronicle Books, 2015

Monday, June 15, 2015

Can it be done again? Yes! In board book format for little totz' hands. And how about dropping the line, "Perhaps she'll die."? Why can't a cough release all the Old Lady's new friends she has temporarily ingested? Much more friendly thanks to Lucille Colandro's text.

And then Jared Lee's illustrations add a frenzy to the story with tiny pen hash marks zinging across the imagery. The layout is brilliant. (That black dog is the cutest ever and with a few others, smartly avoids being eaten!)

Friday, June 12, 2015

Here's a collection of poems centered on all things after school. Read a few for this Poetry Friday!

Escape

Out of the prison gates I slip,
I zig and zag, I dodge and dip,
Through the dark forest of towering trees,
Leaving no trail for my enemies.
Across the wild river on a narrow log,
Past the castle with the howling wolf-dog,
One last mad dash! I got home okay!
Good thing that my school is just three blocks away.

Monday, June 1, 2015

How can you not chuckle just by saying the title: Polar Bear's Underwear? Right? This Chronicle Books release isn't a board book, but the stiff pages with underwear cutouts will hold up to little hands.

As Polar Bear and Mouse look for the missing undergarment, they find other underwear with design hints as to whom the clothing might belong. The zebra's is striped. The butterfly's is tiny and covered in flowers. The guessing game will keep the giggles going along with the fun tighty-whitey ending.

Tupera Tupera, the team of Tatsuya Kameyama and Atsuko Nakagawa's layered collage hints at Eric Carle while holding its own freshness. Enjoy!

Friday, May 22, 2015

Celebrate Poetry Friday with Vern Kousky's delightful owl, Otto. A secret poet eventually scorned, he finds his voice with the realization that, "Poetry should be shared with everyone." He quotes T.S. Eliot, Joyce Kilmer, and more, while writing his own words. "The more the owls listen, the less they feel like laughing."

"Dear Moon, you must be lonely
so high up in the sky.
I'm sure your heart's so heavy,
sometimes you want to cry."

Thursday, May 21, 2015

I love this book! Leaving it out on the coffee table, I've seen it engage all ages, totz to seniors. The wordless imagery usually plays across a spread, revealing a "before and after" scene, situation, or object. The touch of humor, or seriousness, and clean illustrations with a gentle palette sustain the page turns. Occasionally a full spread follows a full spread enhancing the beat of the book.

From acorn to tree, to more complicated strings echoing subjects: squid to ink, pigeon to quill pen, quill pen to typewriter, pigeon to airmail letter, the reader is engaged. Pick up this work and be caught between the profound and daily "before and afters." This work deserved a major award.

Before After
by Anne-Margot Ramstein and Matthias Aregui
Candlewick Press, 2014

Monday, May 18, 2015

Counting with a troop of guinea pigs is a delight! What better place than in a party. From ten to one, the party winds down, yet when one wishes really hard for his friends again, the guinea pig party twirls into action.

Holly Surplice's pig party introduces counting backwards, patterns, active verbs, and bright colors. It's a little gem to celebrate or get a party going. Share it with your totz!

Friday, May 15, 2015

Happy National Photo Month to everyone! I'm honored to be included in this excellent collection of poetry, highlighting celebrations: The Poetry Friday Anthology for Celebrations. The contributors and compilers have created a treasure to inspire appreciation for poetry and days of joy.

"Like" readertotz on Facebook, drop a comment on the link relating to this post, and you'll be entered to win either a Teacher Edition or Child Edition. (Note if you are a teacher or librarian!)

Tuesday, May 5, 2015

I love it when Joan and I review the same books on readertotz. We live across the country from each other, and we work fairly independently on totz as we write our own works. So if you see a book reviewed twice you can believe we recommend it! i.e. the last two Harry posts!

In place of a review this week, I want to redirect everyone to Books Around the Table. Author/Illustrator Laura Kvasnosky looks over her new grandson's collection of board books and is heartened by what she finds. Enjoy!

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

There are lots of farm-theme books out now that it's spring. The cover of this one caught my attention right away and made me smile.

Two kids are on the farm playing with Harry the hippo. And
what does Harry want to play? Hide-and-seek. Totz will laugh as Harry tries to
hide behind a plow or in a haystack. He may think he’s hiding, but he never
quite manages to completely camouflage himself. In the end, he is found, and
the game begins again.

Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Harry the Hippo has two friends, a girl and boy. Whether they are playing hide-and-seek on the farm or at the playground, totz will enjoy helping the children find Harry. There's something adorable about a large entity hiding when his size makes him very easy to spot. Say a hippo behind a cow or a sunflower. It's giggle-worthy for older readers and helpful for wee ones to find Harry.

The series will likely be a hit with your young readers. Invite Harry onto your bookshelf!

Tuesday, April 14, 2015

In Maisy’s Plane, Maisy is flying herself to a party. I love
seeing her in the plane, taking charge like this. How exciting when she starts
the engine. And when the propeller goes around and around. Vroom, Vroom! In the
end, we find out that her destination is a party for Eddie the elephant. Well done, Maisy!

Pair Maisy's Plane with Maisy’s Tractor. In this one, we see Maisy
driving a tractor. Chug, chug! She’s plowing and working hard, appearing
competent. She finds lost lambs and brings them home. Well done, Maisy!

Maisy serves as a wonderful, confident role-model for girl
totz in both of these books!

Monday, April 6, 2015

You HAVE TO get ready for May 4th, (May the Fourth Be With You), with this brand new board book trilogy from Chronicle Books. Think felt art, twelve words, and 12 epic scenes from the original Star Wars movies in each book.

It's absolutely adorable and detailed. Watch this behind the scenes take from Jack and Holman Wang:

What a great way to introduce your Padawan readertotz to this epic tale. I love it!

Friday, April 3, 2015

Another cute book from Jannie Ho! It’s full of chunky tabs that
work really well. Cutie Pie, the yellow chick, is searching for the Easter
Bunny. She meets lots of other friends everywhere she looks, and they all have
Easter eggs. In the end, she finally has an Easter egg of her own. Very sweet
and satisfying ending for toddlers.

Around the Block with Sesame Street

Joan's new board books: This Little Trailblazer, Mighty Dads, This Little President

Our Mission

readertotz, little sister site to readergirlz, is a board book blog dedicated to raising the profile and quality of infant/toddler books, the first genre in children's literature able to instill a love of reading.

Titles featured are books Joan and Lorie Ann purchase, library books, and/or publishing house submissions. Our responses are our honest opinions, sometimes with constructive feedback; but we only post about books we like, so you won't find any completely negative reviews/responses here.